But I really don't see that it's the Department of Transportation's job to make people be polite to each other. This isn't about safety. It's about enforcing some sort of convenient social more. That's not what I want the DoT focusing on.
Reshared post from +Breaking News
Transportation Department to consider banning cell phone calls on planes
+POLITICO: The U.S. Department of Transportation will consider banning cell phone calls during flights after recent outcry over an FCC proposal to loosen restrictions.
“We believe USDOT’s role, as part of our Aviation Consumer Protection Authority, is to determine if allowing these calls is fair to consumers. USDOT will now begin a process that will look at the possibility of banning these in-flight calls,” Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement emailed to POLITICO.
The FCC announced last month it is considering allowing in-flight cell phone calls.
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Cellphones banned on airplanes? Maybe
The Transportation Department will look at banning cell phone calls during airplane flights — a move that could render moot an upcoming decision by the FCC on loosening the long-standing restrictions. The news from Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx comes after weeks of outcry from travelers, members of Congress and the airlines themselves…
My understanding was that it can disrupt cell service on the ground, although my information might be out of date by now.
There have been concerns in the past about how rapid changes through cells could cause problems. I don't have the sense that this is what the DoT is actually concerned about (if anything, it would be an FCC issue, and the FCC is ready to give their go-ahead).